Pet grooming tool and method of manufacturing pet grooming tools

ABSTRACT

A pet grooming tool comprises a pet engageable portion formed of polymeric material and having a plurality of teeth. A method of forming a pet grooming tool comprises molding a pet engageable portion out of a first polymeric material and thereafter over-molding a handle portion to the pet engageable portion.

RELATED APPLICATION DATA

This application is a division of U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/490,753, filed on Jul. 20, 2006.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention pertains to pet grooming tools of the type used to removeloose hair from pets without cutting or pulling non-loose hair from thepets. The disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 7,077,076 entitle “Pet GroomingTool” and issued Jul. 18, 2006, is hereby incorporated in its entiretyby reference.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In a first aspect in accordance with the invention, a pet grooming toolcomprises a pet engageable portion and a handle portion. The petengageable portion has a plurality of teeth and is formed of a firstpolymeric material having first tensile yield strength. The handleportion is secured to the pet engageable portion and is formed of asecond polymeric material. The second polymeric material has a secondtensile yield strength that is less than the first tensile yieldstrength.

In a second aspect in accordance with the invention, a pet grooming toolcomprises a pet engageable portion. The pet engageable portion is formedof a polymeric material and has a plurality of teeth arranged in a row.The pet engageable portion comprises a first surface and a plurality ofintersecting surfaces. Each of the intersecting surfaces intersects thefirst surface in a manner forming an acute edge segment. The edgesegments and the teeth alternate with each other along the row. Each ofat least two adjacent teeth of the plurality of teeth comprises a toothsurface. The tooth surface of one of the two adjacent teeth acutelyintersects the tooth surface of the other of the two adjacent teeth.

In a third aspect in accordance with the invention, a method comprisesinjection molding a pet engageable portion of a pet grooming tool out ofa first polymeric material in a manner such that the pet engageableportion comprises a plurality of teeth arranged in a row. The methodfurther comprises placing the pet engageable portion into an injectionmolding cavity. Still further, the method comprises injecting a secondpolymeric material into the mold cavity while the pet engageable portionis in the mold cavity in a manner forming a handle portion out of thesecond polymeric material that is secured to the pet engageable portion.The second polymeric material is different from the first polymericmaterial.

While the principal features of the invention have been described above,a more complete and thorough understanding of the invention may beobtained by referring to the drawing figures and the detaileddescription of the preferred embodiments, which follow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of a petgrooming tool in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the pet grooming tool shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the pet grooming tool shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 4 is a top view of the pet grooming tool shown in FIGS. 1-3.

FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the pet grooming tool shown in FIGS. 1-4.

FIG. 6 is a front view of the pet engageable portion of the pet groomingtool shown in FIGS. 1-5.

FIG. 7 is a side projection view of the pet engageable portion of thepet grooming tool shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the pet engageable portion of thepet grooming tool shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 taken about the line 8-8 shownin FIG. 6.

FIG. 9 is a side view of the handle and pet engageable portions of thepet grooming tool shown in FIGS. 1-5 shown without the grip portionattached to the handle portion.

Reference numerals in the written specification and in the drawingfigures indicate corresponding items.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

A preferred embodiment of a pet grooming tool in accordance with theinvention is shown in FIGS. 1-5 and indicated by reference numeral 10.The pet grooming tool 10 comprises a pet engageable portion 12, a handleportion 14, and a grip portion 16.

The pet engageable portion 12 of the pet grooming tool 10 is formed of apolymeric material, preferably by using an injection molding process.Preferably but not necessarily, the polymeric material that forms thepet engageable portion 12 is either polycarbonate or acetal, which haverelatively high tensile yield strength and good creep resistance ascompared to other less expensive polymeric materials. As shown mostclearly in FIGS. 6-8, the pet engageable portion 12 preferably isgenerally rectangular in shape and preferably comprises a planar rearsurface 18 and a parallel planar front surface 20. Preferably, anarcuate surface 22 of the pet engageable portion 12 extends down fromthe front surface 20 and tapers therefrom toward the rear surface 18.

A plurality of teeth 24 are preferably formed in a row along the bottomof the pet engageable portion 12. Each tooth 24 is preferably bound infront by the arcuate surface 22, in the rear by the rear surface 18 and,except for the first and last teeth in the row, by two tooth sidesurfaces 26. An intersecting surface 28 is preferably formed betweeneach adjacent pair of the teeth 24. Each intersecting surface 28 ispreferably planar and preferably extends from the arcuate surface 22 tothe rear surface 18 in a manner creating an acute horizontal edgesegment 30 with the rear surface. Each edge segment 30 preferably has anedge angle of between forty-five degrees and seventy-five degrees, andmore preferably of approximately sixty degrees.

The tooth side surfaces 26 of each tooth 24 acutely intersect the sidetooth surfaces of each adjacent tooth at the root of the tooth. It isfrom such intersections that the intersecting surfaces 28 extenddownward toward the edge segments 30. The tooth side surfaces 26 of anygiven tooth 24, excluding the first and last teeth 36, also preferablyacutely intersect each other at the tip 32 of said tooth in a mannerforming an acute edge 34 of angle α (shown in FIG. 6) that extendshorizontally and generally perpendicular to the edge segments 30. Thetips 32 of the first and last teeth 36 in the row preferably do not haveacute edges. Additionally, the first and last teeth 36 are preferablywider than the other teeth to reduce the likelihood of damaging theteeth in the event that the pet grooming tool is dropped. Preferablythere are between thirteen and fourteen of the teeth 24 per inch alongthe row of teeth and preferably the tips 32 of the teeth areapproximately an eighth of an inch below the edge segments 30 of the petengageable portion 12.

The upper portion of the pet engageable portion 12 may optionallycomprise one or more openings 38 or other indentations. Such openings 38or indentations create cavities in the pet engageable portion 12 thatallow the handle portion 14 of the pet grooming tool 10 to be secured tothe pet engageable portion via interlocking geometry, but are notnecessary if the handle portion is melt bonded to the pet engageableportion.

After the pet engageable portion 12 has been formed, it is preferablyplaced in another mold into which another polymeric material isinjection molded to form the handle portion 14. The polymeric materialused to form the handle portion 14 can be any one of commonly usedengineering plastics such as ABS, nylon, and ploypropylene, and ispreferably less expensive than the polymeric material used to form thepet engageable portion. Notably, the material used to form the handleportion 14 needs not be as creep resistant nor have as high a yieldstrength as the material used to form the pet engageable portion 12.Preferably however, the polymeric material used to form the handleportion 14 has a melt temperature close to that of the polymericmaterial used to form the pet engageable portion 12 such that thematerials become melt-bonded to each other when the handle portion isformed. Alternatively, the pet engageable portion 12 can be providedwith cavities, such as the openings 38 shown in FIG. 6, so that thehandle portion 14 becomes geometrically interlocked with the petengageable portion when formed therearound.

The mold used to form the handle portion 14 is preferably shaped suchthat, when formed, the handle portion comprises a base portion 40 thatencircles the upper portion of the pet engageable portion 12, and anelongate portion 42 extending therefrom. The elongate portion 42 of thehandle portion 14 is preferably shaped to be grasped comfortably byhand. Additionally, the elongate portion 42 preferably comprises aplurality of recessed areas 44 and a through-hole 46 at its distal end.The through-hole is provided simply to provide means for hanging the petgrooming tool 10 from a hook or the like, and for provided means forattaching a lanyard to the pet grooming tool.

After forming the handle portion 14 of the pet grooming tool 10, theassembly of the handle portion 14 and the pet engageable portion 12 isthen placed in yet another mold. This mold preferably has a shapesimilar to the mold used to form the handle portion 14, except at areaswhere the recesses on the handle portion are located. This mold isconfigured so that yet another polymeric material, such as thermoplasticpolyurethane, styrene-ethylene/butylene-styrene copolymer, copolyesters,copolyamides, thermoplastic rubber, or thermoplastic vulcanate, can beinjected molded into the recessed areas 44 of the handle portion 14 toform the grip portion 16 of the pet grooming tool 10. The grip portion16 preferably has an outer contour that meets flush with the outercontour of the handle portion adjacent the recessed areas 44. Thepolymeric material used to form the grip portion 16 preferably is softerthan the polymeric material used to form the handle portion 14 andpreferably has a higher coefficient of friction. As such, the gripportion 16 increases the comfort and improves the grip when grasping thepet grooming tool 10.

The pet grooming tool 10 is preferably utilized to remove loose hairfrom a furry pet, such as a dog or cat, without cutting or pullingnon-loose hair from the pet. In use, a person grasps the handle portion14 of the pet grooming tool 10 and presses the pet engageable portion 12of the tool into the fur of a pet. Preferably the pet grooming tool 10is held in a manner such that rear surface 18 of the pet engageableportion 12 is generally perpendicular to the skin of the furry pet. Thepet grooming tool is then preferably pulled in a manner such that thefront surface 20 of the pet engageable portion 12 trials behind the rearsurface 18 of the pet engageable portion. As the pet grooming tool 10 ispulled, both loose and non-loose hair passes between the teeth 24 of thepet engageable portion 12. The acute angle of edge segments 30facilitates the ability of the pet engageable portion 12 to pull theloose hair from the pet without also cutting or pulling non-loose hairfrom the pet. Additionally, the acute shape of the tips 32 of the teeth24 helps channel hair into the voids between the teeth 24, whereasblunter teeth would otherwise tend to mash hair against the skin of thepet.

While the present invention has been described in reference to aspecific embodiment, in light of the foregoing, it should be understoodthat all matter contained in the above description or shown in theaccompanying drawings is intended to be interpreted as illustrative andnot in a limiting sense and that various modifications and variations ofthe invention may be constructed without departing from the scope of theinvention defined by the following claims. Thus, other possiblevariations and modifications should be appreciated.

Furthermore, it should be understood that when introducing elements ofthe present invention in the claims or in the above description of thepreferred embodiment of the invention, the terms “comprising,”“including,” and “having” are intended to be open-ended and mean thatthere may be additional elements other than the listed elements.Additionally, the term “portion” should be construed as meaning some orall of the item or element that it qualifies. Moreover, use ofidentifiers such as first, second, and third should not be construed ina manner imposing any relative position or time sequence betweenlimitations. Still further, the order in which the steps of any methodclaim that follows are presented should not be construed in a mannerlimiting the order in which such steps must be performed.

1. A pet grooming tool comprising: a pet engageable portion having aplurality of teeth, the pet engageable portion being formed of a firstpolymeric material having first tensile yield strength; a handle portionsecured to the pet engageable portion and being formed of a secondpolymeric material, the second polymeric material having a secondtensile yield strength that is less than the first tensile yieldstrength, wherein the pet engageable portion comprises a first surfaceand a plurality of intersecting surfaces, each of the intersectingsurfaces intersects the first surface in a manner forming an acute edgesegment, the teeth are arranged in a row, and the edge segments and theteeth alternate with each other along the row; and wherein the pluralityof teeth includes a first tooth and second tooth that are adjacent eachother, each of the first tooth and the second tooth comprises a tiphaving first and second tooth surfaces that intersect each other in amanner forming an acute edge, and wherein one of the first and secondtooth surfaces of the first tooth acutely intersects one of the firstand second tooth surfaces of the second tooth.
 2. A pet grooming tool inaccordance with claim 1 wherein the handle portion is secured to the petengageable portion via a melt-bond.
 3. A pet grooming tool in accordancewith claim 1 wherein the handle portion is secured to the pet engageableportion via interlocking geometry.
 4. A pet grooming tool in accordancewith claim 1 wherein the first surface is planar, the intersectingsurfaces are each planar, and each of the first and second toothsurfaces of each of the first tooth and the second tooth is planar.
 5. Apet grooming tool in accordance with claim 1 wherein the teeth include afirst tooth and the edge segments include a first edge segment, thefirst tooth comprises a tip having first and second tooth surfaces thatintersect each other in a manner forming an acute edge, and the acuteedge of the first tooth extends perpendicular to first edge segment ofthe pet engageable portion.
 6. A pet grooming tool in accordance withclaim 1 wherein the plurality of teeth includes a first tooth and secondtooth that are adjacent each other, each of the first tooth and thesecond tooth comprises a tooth surface, and wherein the tooth surface ofthe first tooth acutely intersects the tooth surface of the secondtooth.
 7. A pet grooming tool in accordance with claim 1 furthercomprising at least one hand-grip portion that is formed of a thirdpolymeric material and is secured to the handle portion by a melt-bond,the third polymeric material being different form the first and secondpolymeric materials.
 8. A pet grooming tool in accordance with claim 1wherein the teeth are arranged in a row and are spaced from each otherin a manner such that the pet engageable portion has less than fourteenteeth per inch and more than thirteen teeth per inch.
 9. A pet groomingtool comprising: a pet engageable portion formed of a polymeric materialand having a plurality of teeth arranged in a row, the pet engageableportion comprising a first surface and a plurality of intersectingsurfaces, each of the intersecting surfaces intersecting the firstsurface in a manner forming an acute edge segment, the edge segments andthe teeth alternating with each other along the row, the plurality ofteeth including a first tooth and a second tooth that are adjacent eachother, each of the first tooth and the second tooth comprising a toothsurface, the tooth surface of the first tooth acutely intersecting thetooth surface of the second tooth; and wherein the tooth surface of thefirst tooth constitutes a first tooth surface of the first tooth, thetooth surface of the second tooth constitutes a first tooth surface ofthe second tooth, the first tooth comprises a second tooth surface thatintersects the first tooth surface of the first tooth in a mannerforming a tip of the first tooth that has an acute edge, and the secondtooth comprises a second tooth surface that intersects the first toothsurface of the second tooth in a manner forming a tip of the secondtooth that has an acute edge.
 10. A pet grooming tool in accordance withclaim 9 wherein the edge segments include a first edge segment, and theacute edges of the tips of the first tooth and the second tooth extendperpendicular to the first edge segment of the pet engageable portion.11. A pet grooming tool in accordance with claim 9 wherein the firstsurface is planar, the intersecting surfaces are each planar, and thetooth surface of each of the first tooth and the second tooth is planar.12. A pet grooming tool in accordance with claim 9 wherein the polymericmaterial constitutes a first polymeric material and wherein the petgrooming tool further comprises a handle portion secured to the petengageable portion and that is formed of a second polymeric materialthat is different from the first polymeric material.
 13. A pet groomingtool in accordance with claim 12 wherein the handle portion is securedto the pet engageable portion via a melt-bond.
 14. A pet grooming toolin accordance with claim 12 wherein the handle portion is secured to thepet engageable portion via interlocking geometry.
 15. A pet groomingtool in accordance with claim 12 further comprising at least onehand-grip portion that formed of a third polymeric material and issecured to the handle portion by a melt-bond, the third polymericmaterial being different form the first and second polymeric materials.16. A pet grooming tool in accordance with claim 12 wherein the firstpolymeric material has a first tensile yield strength and the secondpolymeric material has a second tensile yield strength that is less thanthe first tensile yield strength.